JACKSONVILLE, Ala. --- The Tennessee State men’s basketball team extended its winning streak to six games with a convincing 65-47 road win in Ohio Valley Conference action versus Jacksonville State at Pete Mathews Coliseum on Saturday Night.

TSU (14-11, 9-5 OVC) earns the season sweep over Jacksonville State (18-9, 9-5 OVC) after having beaten the defending OVC Tournament champion Gamecocks earlier this season at the Gentry Center.

Seniors Delano Spencer and Ken’Darrius Hamilton led TSU with 15 points apiece with Kamar McKnight chipping in with 11 points off the bench. The Tigers led for 33:31 of the 40 minutes and shot 50 percent (22-of-44) on the night.

Defensively, TSU held the Gamecocks to 34.0 percent (16-of-47) and forced JSU into 19 turnovers.

For the Tigers, it is the third-consecutive season with a winning streak of at least six games.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

TSU LEADERS

POINTS – Delano Spencer and Ken’Darrius Hamilton - 15

REBOUNDS – Ken’Darrius Hamilton and Stokley Chaffee Jr. - 7

ASSISTS – Armani Chaney - 3

Delano Spencer has now scored in double figures in 22 of TSU’s 25 games.

Ken’Darrius Hamilton scored in double digits for the 11th time this season and 19th time in his career.

Kamar McKnight scored in double figures for the second game in a row and the 12 time this season.

HOW IT HAPPENED

In the first eight minutes, the Tigers forced seven turnovers and had a 12-7 advantage on the scoreboard.

Later in the half, six-consecutive made free throws gave TSU its largest lead of the half of 11 points at 29-18 with 3:35 to go before halftime.

A running jumper by Armani Chaney on the final possession of the half put the score at 33-25 in favor of TSU heading into the break.

TSU forced 12 first-half turnovers.

Ken’Darrius Hamilton connected on a pair of three pointers in the first 12 minutes of the second half as the Tigers extended their advantage to 56-39.

TSU continued to lead by double digits the rest of the way, taking a 20-point lead in the final minute.

The Tigers shot 63.2 percent from the field in the second half.

GAME NOTES

TSU is 19-13 in the all-time series versus Jacksonville State.

The Tigers won the first meeting with JSU this season by a 67-60 final score on Jan. 4 at the Gentry Center.

Since the start of the 2015-16 season, Tennessee State is 11-5 when playing a team for the second time in the same year.

TSU led at the half for the third-consecutive game. The Tigers are 8-2 when leading through 20 minutes this season.

The Tigers are 27-4 when holding an opponent under 60 points under fourth-year Head Coach Dana Ford.

TSU now has three-consecutive seasons with winning streaks of six games or more. The Tigers began last season with six-consecutive wins and won seven in a row in non-conference play in 2015-16.

QUOTES

Head Coach Dana Ford

“Proud of our guys. Coming on the road against a really good team – a team that’s probably going to win 20 games this year. They’ve been really good at home. To be able to come in here and defend like we did and rebound in the second half like we did. We got a little loose with the ball in the second half - give a lot of credit to them. I thought they started really playing hard, but really happy for our players.” - Thoughts on the win

“I thought we were flying around. I thought we were really locked in, we were really helping each other. Guys tried to guard the ball without fouling. Our big men moved their feel really well. If we are locked in and we are flying around, we’re pretty good defensively - if we limit people to one shot, and I thought we did that, especially in the second half.” - On the defensive effort

Ken’Darrius Hamilton

“It’s a big accomplishment for us. We’re just going to get our head right for the next game and keep doing what we do and keep executing.” - On winning six in a row

“That’s really big. Here at Tennessee State, we’re built on defense and rebounding, and I feel like my teammates came out here and did that to the best of their abilities tonight.” - On the defense forcing 19 turnovers and hold JSU to 34 percent shooting

UP NEXT

TSU hosts Morehead State on Thursday, Feb. 15 at the Gentry Center at 7:30 p.m.

The game will air live on the OVC Digital Network and on the radio on 102.1 The Ville.